Interim report of the JHPS expert committee on radiation protection of the lens of the eye (5). Current occupational radiation exposure of the lens of the eye in Japan

For many Japanese radiation workers in the medical, nuclear and other industrial fields, the equivalent dose of the lens of the eye will be sufficiently lower than the new ICRP dose limit. However, the dose of the eye for medical staff members who are engaged in interventional radiology and cardiology may exceed the new ICRP dose limit, especially when they are exposed closely to higher scatter radiation for a long time. In addition, the radiation dosimetry and radiation protection for emergency and recovery workers in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP1) are important issues. Thus gathering information related to the radiation dose and protection for Japanese radiation workers is important to a discussion regarding implementation of the new ICRP dose limit for the lens of the eye for Japanese regulations and planning radiation dose reduction measures. In this paper, recent studies and issues regarding radiation exposure and protection in the medical, nuclear and other industrial fields, as well as for emergency and recovery workers in the FNPP1 were summarized. (author)